What Have I Done?
by EllaPhaba
Summary: Hans arrives at Elsa's castle too late to stop her from killing the Duke's henchmen. Elsa goes on the run, but has a hard time living with the guilt and must decide between her freedom or her conscience. First ever fanfic, rated T just to be safe. All input is helpful!
1. Chapter 1

The young woman stood in the silent room. The only think breaking the heavy quiet was the rasping, shallow breaths of the man at her feet. He lay in an awkward position with blood gushing horrifically from a wound in his chest. As he raised his pleading eyes to the girl standing above him, she looked at her hands, which were still tinted a shimmering blue color. The man slowly raised a shaking hand to the thick icicle impaled in his chest. The young woman, looking from her hands to the blood that was pooling on the floor, sank to her knees. She watched in horror as the life left the man's eyes, but was startled out of her emotions when more soldiers burst through the icy doorway.

Hans stopped short when he saw the blood and the body of The Duke's henchman. Near the balcony on the other side of the room, there were shards of ice, signs of a scuffle, and skidding footprints scratched into the icy floor- up to the edge of the balcony. Now, the young woman was scrambling from her knees to stand and face his small army. Seeing the blood, Hans lost any remorse he might have had in killing this witch. He set his face in a determined, intimidating glare. She had just murdered two men. To kill Elsa now was completely justified.

Standing, Elsa ran her shaking hands through her white-blonde hair. She watched Hans step forward with his sword drawn. _The love of Anna's life. Come to kill me._

"Queen Elsa," Hans said, taking another step into the icy room, "We don't want to do you harm. Come with us peacefully, and everything will be much easier."

With these pre-planned words, the group of soldiers fanned out, blocking the door and brandishing their weapons menacingly. Hans's words were just words. The men could care less if Elsa died at their hand. She wasn't really _their_ queen, anyway. Not to mention the fact that she was an evil sorceress.

"How funny it is that you're all of kind words at my coronation, and once my powers are revealed, you want to kill me," Elsa accused, "I can see past your words, Hans. There is no coming peacefully. You're here for my blood."

The young queen tried to keep her voice even and strong, despite the fear that she felt. Concealing her true feelings was something she was good at, though.

"Anders," Hans addressed the man on his right, "Fire."

The young soldier aimed his crossbow, took a breath to steady himself, and fired an arrow directly at Elsa's heart. The lethal arrow did not find its mark, though, as Elsa raised a sheet of ice to stop the arrow in its deadly path. Elsa stood poised, waiting for the next attack, her hands tingling with cold power. Hans made a hand signal and two more archers took aim and fired. Elsa speedily raised both hands, stopping both arrows inches from her face with two jagged ice sheets.

Hans could see that arrows wouldn't work while Elsa had this advantage. He signaled for the men to stop shooting any arrows, and after a pause that filled the crystal room with tension, held his sword ahead of him and bellowed, "Charge!" His men stormed forward into the room.

Elsa's stomach dropped as the men charged closer. True, the sheer ice made it difficult for them to move at top speed, but they were closing in. _Think! _Almost at the last second, she slammed her foot to the floor and willed a slab of ice to rise beneath her feet. It was not as beautiful as when she made her castle, but it was not about aesthetics. This was life or death. And she wasn't going to give up her newly acquired freedom quickly. As she rose up, she found slight amusement in watching the men's faces. _They didn't expect this!_

Hans was disgusted, but not disheartened. True, Elsa was out of their reach momentarily, but she had trapped herself, and it was only a matter of time before they could reach her.

"Grab the ice picks! Get rope!" Hans commanded, and his men sprang into action.

"Good luck with that!" Elsa taunted, though her mind was racing with plans for escape.

All too soon, though, the men were making their way towards her frozen perch. As half a dozen men crested the top of the ice pillar, Elsa flung her hands ahead of her and created a tall mound of snow. Suddenly, an image of a very similar mound of snow surfaced in her mind. The memory of that night hit Elsa like an avalanche. _Anna! Oh, Anna, I'm so sorry!_ She replayed the scene in her mind yet again, as she had for years. _Anna continues to jump, but Elsa can't keep up. She slips on that blasted ice and as Anna jumps into thin air, Elsa fires another blast of snow. It hits Anna in the head and she goes tumbling to the ground. Anna! _Elsa snapped out of her memory as soldiers closed in on her. Clearing her mind, she leapt from the ice to the snow, and created another snow mound ahead of her. She leapt onto it and then jumped to the ground.

"Don't let her get away!" Hans shouted, "Shoot! Shoot her!"

The handful of archers took aim and fired a volley of arrows at the blonde woman. She had chosen to get ahead of the arrows and out of their way, rather than spend more energy producing ice, and as arrow upon arrow missed her, the plan was working. Anders grabbed his last arrow, loaded his crossbow, aimed, and fired with all of his concentration. Time seemed to stand still as the soldiers watched the arrow fly towards Elsa. She turned and looked over her shoulder as the arrow sped at her. She waved her hand for an ice shield, but it rose too late. The arrow lodged itself in her left shoulder and time no longer stood still.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much for reading this! Again, any helpful tips about fanfiction in general are helpful, as I'm a first-timer!**

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**Enjoy!**

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Pain exploded in Elsa's shoulder and her breath froze in her throat. Never had she experienced this feeling. She could feel her arm throbbing, but when she looked down, blood had not yet appeared. She looked back up to see the soldiers running at her. Grabbing up her dress, she began to run for her life to the stairway. As she descended to the first landing, she gritted her teeth and yanked the arrow from her arm. Instantly, the pain tripled and blood began to seep out of the wound, staining the sheer blue sleeve of her dress. She let out a small cry, but continued her escape down the stairs. Just as she was clearing the last few stairs, a volley of arrows sped past her, one coming so close that she felt it sever a few hairs from the top of her head. She ran for the door, and turned around to send a section of the stairs crashing to the ground. The tinkling of breaking ice filled the room and Elsa was satisfied as Hans's men had to stop short to keep from falling off of the drop. _That should stop them for a while. _The blonde woman continued to run until she was out of the large ice doors. Outside, the sun was touching the distant mountains, and the sky was painted orange, purple, yellow, and pink. It would have been a beautiful moment had she not been running from the castle that had come to symbolize her freedom.

Hans stopped short as five stairs ahead, a large gap appeared. The stairs went crashing 30 feet below and exploded into twinkling shards of ice. Hans looked up from the gap below to see Elsa turn and dash out of the tall ice doors.

"Get the ropes again!" Hans called to his men, "We are _not_ going to lose her!"

The men rushed to secure the ropes to the railing, and sent the loose ends down to the floor. The soldiers scurried down the ropes like rats on a docked ship, then jumped to the shining floor below. Hans was among the first men to jump down, and they wasted no time in pursuing Elsa out the door. The men's horses were still outside, unharmed, so they ran to mount them.

"C'mon, Sitron, c'mon," Hans dug his heels into his faithful horse's sides, urging the steed to go faster.

A steady wave of men sped down the snowy slope. Hans could see Elsa in the distance, but as she had to go on foot, the men on the horses were gaining on her.

Elsa looked over her shoulder. The men had gotten down the stairs far sooner than she had anticipated, and they were quickly eliminating the space between her and themselves. She was going to need to either think of something soon or surrender herself. Her entire arm suddenly felt as if it were on fire, as if to remind her that she was still wounded. She was beginning to grow exhausted from the pain, running, and use of her powers, and the young queen was suddenly more aware of just how much danger she was really in.

Elsa managed to keep ahead of the pack of soldiers by occasionally laying out a sharp wall of ice or by unleashing a mini avalanche to knock them off their course. While these diversions slowed their pace, it further exhausted the blonde. Night was falling, though, and the pastel colors in the sky darkened and eventually surrendered to the deep blue of night. Elsa used the darkness and another wall of ice to hide herself behind a ledge. She willed a light dusting of snow to fall to cover her tracks and the drops of blood that had begun to fall from her arm. She hoped the snow would also make it seem like she'd kept moving forward and that her tracks were simply covered, though truthfully the tracks had stopped. Hans didn't need to know that, though.

Finally able to catch her breath, Elsa collapsed to the soft snow, exhausted. As she lay in the powder, a deep cold took hold of her arm. The cold numbed the shoulder wound and took away the pain, giving Elsa a brief sense of relief. She had forgotten that the magic within her occasionally tried to help her out by numbing her pain. Years ago, when her parents died, she had been crying for hours when a cold sensation spread through her head, dulling her senses. She was still filled with sorrow, but she stopped crying and fell into a dreamless sleep on the floor by her door. When she woke up, she felt a little better. What her magic didn't do was fix the problem. The King and Queen of Arendelle did not make a miraculous return, and there was still a jagged puncture in her shoulder.

As Hans sat on the back of Sitron, fighting fatigue and searching the snow below, he began to grow from annoyed to truly angry. Elsa sure knew how to make things difficult. Initially, she held everyone at an icy distance, making it impossible for Hans to ask her to marry him. Then, when Hans had settled for Anna, Elsa wouldn't allow the couple to get married. In all honestly, Anna wasn't _that _bad, although she was a little too energetic and loud for him, not to mention the fact that while Elsa was still alive, she was useless. Then, Elsa had revealed her powers and run off into these blasted mountains, setting a magical winter onto Arendelle, freezing the fjords and causing snow to fall, despite it having been a warm evening not 5 minutes before. Now, Hans could only hope to kill Elsa, go back and marry Anna regardless of her flaws, and find the right time to kill Anna as well, all with the end goal of being crowned King Hans of Arendelle.

No one would have thought Hans capable of thoughts such as these. The youngest of 13, he had grown up almost exclusively with adults, causing him to become a mature young man at a younger age. He loved reading and geography, and loved riding his beloved horse, Sitron, from dawn until dusk, often stopping in the local market for lunch. He learned to be very self- sufficient, having been largely ignored for his entire life. He was quiet, but could hold his own in an argument, and he was genuinely kind to almost everyone he met. So these thoughts of murder and glory were uncharacteristic, but truthfully, they had not been hatched out of nowhere.

Hans's mind wandered as the band of soldiers rode thought the snowy night. It had become impossible to track Elsa once the snow began to fall again in the mountains, but since she'd been following a straight path before, he could only assume she'd kept that path. But she would be exhausted by now, and so Hans called for the men to halt and the group set up a small camp in the tree line. Elsa couldn't be too far ahead.

In reality, Elsa was actually more than a mile behind the camp. She had been nodding off when she heard the jingle of harnesses approach. She pressed herself up against the back of the stone ledge overhang and slowed her shaking breath to a minimum. Soon, though, the band moved past her into the night, and she relaxed her muscles, falling into a fitful sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**New day, new chapter! I had tried to upload it the past two days, and it didn't work for whatever reason. Anyway, thank you to everyone who has been reading, you guys are making this fanfiction experience fantastic!**

**I hope the story is easy enough to follow? Hopefully the way it switches slightly from Elsa's to Hans's point of view isn't TOO confusing.**

**Big thank you to Yellow-eyed-wonder for reviewing, and for the tips! Glad you like it!**

**Another thank you to Hi for reviewing! It's definitely going to stay clean, and at this point I don't see it being HansxElsa, but who knows? :) Glad you like it!**

**Enjoy, and don't hesitate to review!**

When the sun rose in a cloudy gray sky the next morning, Elsa was struggling. Her left arm was immobile, which was especially unfortunate as she was left-handed. She shivered, but not from the cold. She had, for another countless time, dreamt about her parents' deaths. _The irony is I could have saved them. I could have frozen the water and their ship wouldn't have gone down and none of this would have happened. They would be alive right now and I would not be queen and Prince Hans of the Southern Isles would never have set foot in Arendelle. _She shuddered, hearing the groaning of the sinking ship once more before the dream melted back into the depths of her mind.

Out of nowhere, Elsa's mind thought of Anna. She could only hope that the young man in the furs would have the sense that her father had once had, and take Anna to the trolls. But what were the chances of that? She could also hope that she had not hit Anna in the heart. _What was I thinking?_ Really, it was Anna's fault for once again pushing her too far, right? But Elsa would _never _forgive herself if Anna died.

The full realization of everything that had happened in the past few days suddenly slammed into Elsa like an avalanche. _I killed a man! I killed _two _men! Anna might be dead herself, and if what she said was true, Arendelle is covered in snow! Not to mention the fact that now the whole kingdom knows of my powers. What have I done? _Filled with despair, Elsa hugged her knees with tears in her eyes and contemplated what to do next.

The men had not slept well. Spending the night in makeshift shelters in the frigid temperatures was bad enough, but every noise in the impenetrable darkness might have been the ice witch readying for an attack. After eating a cold, unsatisfying breakfast of lefse and dried venison, the men decided that Elsa couldn't have gotten far, so they would spread out and comb the area before heading out again.

"If you find her, do not kill her on the spot. Instead, capture her and bring her to me. We'll bring her back to Arendelle if we can," Hans said. He would be staying here in case Elsa was found. And oh, how he hoped she would be.

Elsa was going to turn herself in. Her conscience had taken over. The consequences might be grim, but with any luck, Hans would bring her back to Arendelle and she could at least see Anna again. Elsa knew that she would be found guilty of murder and would undoubtedly be accused of witchcraft. But she couldn't sit alone for the rest of her life, and if she were to run now, she _would_ be alone, not to mention injured. So, with the feeling coming back into her left arm, bringing with it the dull pain, Elsa got up and began walking in Hans's direction.

It was not too much later when Hans heard footsteps some distance behind him. He turned, expecting a soldier to be approaching, but instead he saw Queen Elsa. Her left shoulder was covered with brownish-red dried blood, and her braided hair was disheveled. Her eyes looked tired, with a hint of desperation. However, she continued to hold her head high, and Hans couldn't help but respect her right now.

"Queen Elsa," Hans said, his voice unreadable.

"Prince Hans," Elsa nodded in greeting, her voice stiff, "I have come…" she broke off, and took a deep breath before continuing, "I have come to surrender myself."

"Guards!" Hans bellowed, so the soldiers would come in from the woods and surrounding area.

Elsa stood with her hands clasped, her stomach twisting, as men came running to the sound of Hans's voice. As soon as they saw Elsa, they pulled out their weapons, an assortment of swords and crossbows.

"No, don't harm her," Hans commanded, "She has come by her own choice and surrendered herself. We're going back to Arendelle."

Elsa breathed a silent sigh of relief as the men went to clean up their camp. _We're going back to Arendelle. _Her relief was interrupted as Hans grabbed a rope from Sitron's saddlebag. He took Elsa's hands and bound her wrists, wrapping the rope around her clasped fingers so she would not be able to separate them and use her power.

Hans put his face next to Elsa's ear as he made the final knot and whispered, "Just so you don't try anything funny."

When the camp was packed up, the men mounted their horses. Hans took the end of Elsa's rope, and the group moved out with the men riding and Elsa walking.

"The murders distracted me," Hans said to Elsa after an hour of travel, "Did Anna come to you? Her horse came back to Arendelle without her, and that's what brought us out here."

"Yes, Anna came to try and bring me back to Arendelle. She had a young man with her, an ice harvester judging by his fur clothing," Elsa replied.

"Where did she go after you wouldn't come back?" Hans asked.

"I don't know. You see, I well… I blasted her with some ice. It was an accident, and she provoked me, but there's a chance that it hit her heart. Then I created the snow monster to chase them away. They probably went back to Arendelle, or possibly to the home of the trolls. They know how to heal magical injuries," Elsa explained.

"This ice harvester," Hans began, "did they seem… close?"

"Well as soon as Anna was hit, he came running to her," Elsa saw the look on Hans's face and added, "Of course I don't know how she views him. She seemed to adore you at the ball."

"And yet you wouldn't let us get married," Hans countered, trying to appear as hurt as possible.

"It was selfish of me, to be sure. I just didn't want to lose her. And I didn't know anything about you. I still don't."

"Elsa, you will most certainly be put in jail when we get to Arendelle."

"I know this."

"What power will you have then to stop us from getting married?" Hans asked.

"I know I cannot stop you from getting married. I just need to know that you will care for her and love her unconditionally," Elsa replied wearily. The journey was physically draining, and her thoughts were emotionally draining. She might be dead in a day, found guilty of murder and witchcraft and executed. She did not know how Anna fared, and she had no interest in discussing marriage. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she did not notice that Hans didn't answer her when she mentioned care and love.

The group continued down the snow-covered ridges and as late afternoon approached, the kingdom came into view. A strong wind blew up from the frozen bay below, and the men shivered and pulled up their collars. Elsa looked down at her shoulder and her stomach dropped. She hadn't noticed until now, but the wound had started bleeding again and she had lost a lot of blood. As she watched the blood steadily seep out, her peripheral vision grew dark and she dropped abruptly to her knees, stopping her fall with her bound hands.

"Hold up!" Hans called to his men, jumping down from his saddle.

As Hans crouched down and tentatively put a hand on the young woman's shoulder, Elsa collapsed the rest of the way to the snow, staining the pure white ground a brilliant red. Her eyes slowly slid out of focus and closed, and her body went limp. _Loss of blood and physical exhaustion, probably_. Despite the resentment he felt for her, Hans took her across his lap in the saddle and let Sitron lead the way to Arendelle. Hans took out his handkerchief and put it against Elsa's shoulder, momentarily slowing the bleeding.

Before entering the kingdom, Hans warned his men, "Don't let Princess Anna see the Queen. We don't need that commotion quite yet."

The band entered the gates and made their way to the dungeons. Seldom used, they lay in a back corner of the castle. As the group made their way to the castle, villagers who were out getting firewood or checking on a neighbor stopped in their tracks to stare at the young Queen. Whispers filled the air as people came into doorways to see the soldiers pass.

When Hans and his men reached the castle, most of the men stayed outside, letting Hans and a few soldiers bring Elsa inside. Kai, the head of staff in the castle was the one who opened the door.

"Queen Elsa?" he gasped.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks guys for sticking with this, I hope you're enjoying it!**

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Elsa woke up with her head throbbing and her arm tightly bandaged. Looking down at her hands, she was shocked to see that they were encased in metal shackles, her fingers wrapped around a bar within the iron mitt. These restraints were connected to a heavy chain which was secured to the floor in the center of the room, so that she could walk within a roughly eight foot diameter. She sat up on the wooden cot and tiny lights danced on her vision. Without warning, Elsa began to cry, her shoulders shaking with the force of her sobs.

The fear of what might happen to her, mixed with the regret for her actions was added to the years and years of heartache that she had kept mostly contained. Frost broke out on the shackles, spreading down the chain and onto the floor, spreading to the walls and moving to the ceiling. Soon, the entire cell was thick with ice as she continued to cry. Noises outside the door made her pause. She could hear voices, and there was one voice that, especially when muffled through a door, was very familiar.

"No! Let me see Elsa! I need to see her!" Anna argued.

"You weren't even supposed to know she was here. She might hurt you again, and you'll be worse off than you are now! She's dangerous, Anna," a man's voice said. Elsa recognized it to be Hans. She realized that he was right. As much as she longed to be with her younger sister, who knew what could happen?

"Elsa's not dangerous," Anna protested.

"That's what you said the last time," Hans retorted.

"Hans the ice in my heart is going away. If she _did _hurt me, we could just kiss again."

"No, Anna, we're leaving. It's getting late and you're still recovering. You need your rest."

With that, the voices grew quiet and distant and Elsa was left truly alone once again. _So a true love's kiss? That's what breaks the heart. It makes sense. The troll _did _the heart is less easily changed than the head. _

After delivering Anna back to her room, Hans went to the library where a blazing fire was going, and wearily sat in an armchair near the fire. Keeping up with Anna was difficult, and keeping up his act was even harder. He was exhausted. The thought of a true love's kiss plagued him. _He _certainly did not feel that strongly about Anna, he simply wanted the throne. _Doesn't it have to be a two-way thing?_ How, then, had Anna's frozen heart thawed?

The flap in the cell door opened and a man's voice came through it, "Queen Elsa, I have food for you so I must unlock your cuffs. You have to swear you will not freeze me though."

"I solemnly swear."

The door creaked open and in stepped a guard, holding a tin plate of food. He looked young, and was obviously nervous to be in the presence of the ice witch. He set the plate on the cot and went to unlock Elsa's hands. His fingers were shaking and he kept glancing up at her.

"You do know I don't _try_ to hurt anyone. I'm not going to blast you or something," Elsa said, looking into the guards face.

The boy relaxed a little, "I will be back in fifteen minutes. Don't try to do anything because you are currently surrounded by guards who are waiting to kill you if you give them a reason to."

"Don't worry, I have no interest in causing trouble," Elsa said in a serious voice, though inwardly she was laughing. _I can imagine the rumors are flying._

The boy left and Elsa stretched her stiff fingers. She started on the plate of food, suddenly starving. The guard came back just as she was finishing the crust of bread and relocked the cuffs. Elsa, having noticed that her shoulder had not pained her as much as she'd expected it to, asked, "My shoulder seems to be healing a bit- how long was I out?"

"Prince Hans brought you back at night, and you were out all day yesterday. The doctor patched you up when Hans brought you back," the young man answered. Not interested in further conversation with the prisoner, he abruptly made for the door and soon it was locked, leaving Elsa alone again.

Elsa lay back on the cot, confused. She had given up her freedom- but why? It made running away in the first place so pointless. She realized with a sigh that she had never expected things to go the way they had. If she had been left in peace, she would not have minded being alone on the North Mountain- it was what she'd longed for, in fact. But when Anna had found her, all she could see was the little girl that she'd nearly killed. Elsa's worst fears had almost come true, and while she'd done her best to control her raging emotions when telling Hans of the ordeal, she felt immense guilt in the fact that she couldn't control her powers. Then, the soldiers came and Elsa had killed two of them without even thinking. That's what scared her the most. She hadn't even thought about what she was doing as she pushed the man off of the balcony or impaled the other with an icicle. _They might have been the Anna in someone else's life_. In that moment, though, she had become the monster everyone feared she was.


	5. Chapter 5

**Alright, new chapter! Thank you guys for reading this, I hope you are enjoying it! I am enjoying writing it!**

**Thank you to everyone who is following this story, and a huge thank you to Yellow-eyed-wonder for you extremely helpful reviews!**

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**Enjoy!**

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Kristoff was sick of pacing. He needed to know if Anna was okay. Telling Sven to stay put, the ice harvester went boldly up to the castle doors and knocked. Anna opened the door.

"I saw you coming," she said with a smile.

"Your hair is back to normal! You're okay!" an excited Kristoff said.

Anna grabbed her braid and ran her hands over it nervously, "Yeah, true love's kiss. It worked."

"Oh, good. Um, great!" Kristoff stammered, scratching his head, "So are you completely okay now? I mean healed?"

"I get chilled every now and then, but it might just be this cursed winter. Otherwise yeah, I'm perfect. I mean- not _perfect_ perfect, but you know-"

"I know," Kristoff laughed, "You're perfect. Wait, what?"

The two stared at each other for an awkward moment.

"Oh. Um, do you want to come in and warm up a bit?" Anna asked, breaking the silence.

"Well I left Sven outside, but he's got fur," Kristoff awkwardly pointed out, "Sure, I can come inside for a bit."

They went inside, and Kristoff felt immediately out of place. Everything was so clean and grand and he- well, he was raised by _trolls_! But he felt comfortable with Anna and so he gradually loosened up. They were walking down the hall with Anna giving a tour when they met Hans.

"Oh, Hans! I don't think you've met Kristoff? He brought me back from Elsa's castle," Anna said, gesturing to the fur-covered man beside her.

"Ah, yes, Kristoff," Hans said with a forced smile.

Kristoff noticed the Prince's eyes flick in a quick once-over. He was suddenly conscious of his bulky frame, rough clothing, and shaggy hair. He'd never felt bad about any of that before, but in the presence of a prince who was tall, well built, perfectly put together, and held Anna's heart, he was abruptly self-conscious.

"It's a pleasure, sir," the ice harvester said stiffly. The two men looked at each other silently, the tension rising.

"Okay, well, I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing, Hans, and finish giving Kristoff his tour," Anna said, once again breaking the silence.

"I will see you at dinner, then," Hans said, bowing slightly to Anna. He made is way down the hall, and they continued past him. He stopped to watch them once they had their backs turned.

Kristoff. What did she see in him? Princesses were supposed to fall for princes, not the commonwealth. Hans needed to get this wedding underway, as soon as possible, before Kristoff could make a move.

After Kristoff left, Hans and Anna sat down to dinner. The head chef came into the dining room with two steaming bowls of stew.

"This should warm you up in no time, your majesties," he said.

"Oh thank you, Karl," Anna said graciously.

"This looks delicious," Hans added.

Left alone, the two began to eat. After a bit, Hans spoke up.

"So, Anna, now that your sister can't stop us, what do you think about getting married?" he said.

"I think it's a little insensitive to use Elsa's imprisonment to our advantage, but I do love you, Hans. And I should _love _to marry you," Anna answered thoughtfully, "But I don't know what to do about our wedding."

"I suppose I could see about clearing her charges," Hans offered.

"Charges? As in multiple? Aren't people just scared about the 'witchcraft'?"

"Um, well there are multiple charges. Technically, no one knows about the second one. I won't trouble you with it," Hans covered and quickly added, "Darling," for good measure.

They finished their dinner and Hans kissed Anna's hand before heading to the village to check on things. Anna saw the opportunity to sneak off to the dungeons unnoticed.

Elsa was lying on the cot, her hands folded across her chest, staring at the frost-covered ceiling. There were a few tears frozen to her pale face. The evening made her cell dark, and the lighting matched her mood. She heard a knock. Its pattern was distinct and she thought it was just surfacing from her memories. Then she heard it again. _Tap tap ta-tap tap. _Standing up, she walked as far as her chains would allow towards the door and quietly said, "Anna?"

"Oh, Elsa!" came the reply.

"Anna! Oh, Anna," Elsa said, tears forming in her eyes, "I'm so sorry, Anna. What I did to you was unforgivable. And all of the years that I hid from you. I'm so sorry. So, so sorry."

Anna sat on the other side of the door, "Elsa, you don't need to apologize. None of this has been your fault. You're talented, not dangerous. And I- I love you, Elsa."

Upon hearing these words, Elsa sank to the ground as close to the door as her restraints allowed.

"Elsa? Can I ask you something?" Anna asked timidly.

"Of course, Anna."

"Tonight at dinner, Hans said there are two charges against you. I would assume one is witchcraft, but what is the other?"

She was answered with silence. Elsa's stomach twisted; she didn't want to admit it to Anna, but she deserved to know. _No more secrets._

"Hans is telling the truth, there is another charge," Elsa took a deep breath before continuing, "After you left my castle, Hans and a group of soldiers came after me. Two men came before the others and they shot at me with arrows and so I- I defended myself. But then I… became a monster. I went further than just stopping them. I killed them. Both."

Anna heard her sister's sobs through the door and her heart broke. But she couldn't believe what she'd just heard.


	6. Chapter 6

**Yay, new chapter! Sorry about the wait, guys! I had writer's block followed by lack of time, so thanks for sticking around.**

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**Hopefully the next wait won't be too long for you guys, but in the meantime, here's the next chapter! Don't be afraid to criticize this or share your opinions!**

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Kristoff had gone back out into the snowy woods with Sven. He was heading back to his home with the trolls, and the sun was setting behind him. The birch trees stood at attention as he passed, and he was deep in thought. Sven was bouncing around excitedly, the snow flying behind his hooves.

_True love's kiss. True love's kiss. _He was tormented by the idea. It couldn't lie, could it? Was true love permanent? If it was true love, Anna and Hans were meant to be. He never stood a chance anyway, why did he ever think he could win the princess's heart?

Kristoff flashed back to a moment before he'd gotten to the gates with Anna's freezing body. He'd left a soft kiss on her head and whispered, "Please be okay." It had been in no way a romantic kiss, but had been a gesture of friendship. He was letting her know that he was worried about her, but that he was there for him, no matter what. But she's been out of it with the cold and he doubted she'd even noticed.

His interaction with Hans left him feeling uneasy. He didn't want to judge from a first impression, but there was something off about the prince. He'd looked almost… nervous? That didn't make any sense; it was Kristoff who had every reason to feel nervous. But there was strange chemistry between Hans and Anna. His life with "the love experts" had told him that much.

Pushing away these confusing, unorganized thoughts, he ran over to Sven. The two playfully raced through the snow covered forest, moving away from Arendelle.

"Elsa, no," Anna whispered, "That can't be true. Surely, you were just protecting yourself. You're- you're not a _monster_."

"Now you know the truth," Elsa sighed through her tears, "Now you know why I had to be kept away from you. Our parents knew something like this could happen. They knew as soon as I hurt you the first time." _Did I just say that? _she panicked.

"The first time? Elsa, what are you talking about?" Anna asked in confusion.

Elsa took a deep breath. _No more secrets, _she repeated in her mind. "Anna, you knew about my powers before the night of my coronation."

"What? No I didn't!" Anna protested.

"No, you did. When we were little, we would sneak out of bed at night and go sledding down the stairs or ice skating through the halls. One night, we went into the ballroom and I was making big snow mounds for you to play in. You kept jumping from mound to mound, and we both were laughing and having fun. You got too fast and went tumbling through the air, and I tried to make another mound to catch you, but I slipped- I slipped on the ice and hit your head with a blast of magic. Papa knew what to do, though, and we rushed out to these magical rock trolls-"

"They're the ones who said an act of true love would thaw my heart!"

"Yes, they know how to heal magical injuries, according to the books I used to read, and what Papa told me about them. Anyway, they altered you memory so you'd forget about my powers, and after that, I had to keep to my room. That way I wouldn't accidentally reveal them in front of you. Papa gave me the gloves, and we were working to help me conceal my magic so I could go out of my room. Then, they died, and I couldn't do it on my own, so I stayed in my room until a few days ago when I _had _to come out. So you _did_ know, you just couldn't remember."

On the other side of the door, Anna's mind was spinning. Her vision grew blurred as tears welled up, threatening to crest down her cheeks. She was overwhelmed, to say the least.

"So, all of the memories I have of us playing in the snowy winter…"

"Were mostly from snow I made," Elsa finished.

Anna was silent. This conversation was almost more than she'd bargained for. Elsa had murdered two men? Her entire life had been a lie? Her own parents had foreseen that Elsa's powers could be dangerous, and Elsa had had to live with this fear? She was suddenly aware that her usually very private sister had just opened up a lot to her, and that had to be hard.

"I'm so sorry, El- wait! Kristoff lives with the trolls; they're his family!" Anna realized.

"Kristoff? Who's that?" Elsa said, confused.

"Yeah, he's the guy who helped me find you. He knew about the trolls' healing powers."

Elsa pictured the young ice harvester. Suddenly the fragments in her mind fell into place. She had thought he'd looked familiar, but she'd had no idea where she would have seen him. Now she could remember. On the night with the trolls there had been a young boy with a baby reindeer hiding behind the rocks. She had only seen the child as they were leaving and had had much more pressing problems that night, so she'd forgotten all about him. But it was the same chocolate-brown eyes and sandy-blonde hair.

"Kristoff had to have known about my powers, then. He was there, hiding, the night we went to the trolls. The night I hurt you," Elsa said. She didn't know why she felt it was important, but it did.

"If he knew about your powers, why wouldn't he have told me?" Anna asked, bewildered.

"I have no idea," Elsa thought aloud.

"Anna? What are you doing here?" Elsa heard Hans through the door.

"I was _finally_ getting a chance to talk to my sister!" Anna answered him hotly.

"Anna. It's late and you're still recovering. Come on," Hans directed.

Elsa could hear Anna standing up. It was so strange hearing them as if they were in another world. Their voices grew distant once again and she went to the window. She hadn't ever quite realized her effect on the kingdom. The homes and streets were piled full of snow as if it were the middle of January, and the iced over fjord was windswept and frigid looking. It should have been a warm summer's evening. Thinking about her childhood had gotten her wondering. Back then, she was able to melt the snow when they were done playing. Why couldn't she do that anymore?

Hans walked Anna to her room, but instead of opening the door, he held the knob, blocking her entrance with his arm. She looked up at him, a confused expression on her face.

"Hans, what are you-?" she started.

"What did Elsa tell you?" he asked, interrupting the redhead.

"Um, she told me that our childhood was different from what I knew, and she told me that she thinks Kristoff knew about her powers, but why?"

"Did you ask her about the charges after our conversation at dinner?"

"Well, yes. It isn't true, is it? She couldn't have killed people! She's not a monster!" Anna insisted.

"Listen, just don't think about it. And don't talk about it, either. There's no formal court here, so we have to deal with these things delicately. I don't want the Queen to be… hurt. Just forget about it, okay?" Hans opened the door, and Anna stepped in while he waited in the doorway.

"Fine. Consider it forgotten," Anna said, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Thank you. Goodnight, Anna," Hans said, "I love you."

"I love you, too, Hans," she replied.

He closed the door gently and went down the dark hall, his thoughts and plans whirling within his head like a blizzard created by the Queen herself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Here's the next chapter, I hope you like it! These chapters are kind of setting up what's to come, so I'm sorry if they seem a little slow. Hopefully you continue reading!**

**Thank you to everyone who has been reading! There have been a lot of views, and that's great! Please, if there is anything you don't like about this, if there is anything that you DO like about this, or if you have an criticism in general, I really would love to hear about it! You won't offend me, don't worry.**

**Without further ado, here is Chapter 7! Enjoy!**

* * *

The sun rose brightly on the snowy land, and the light brought activity. As soon as the sun illuminated the streets, villagers were out checking on neighbors, collecting wood, and trading and buying warm supplies. Inside the castle, the queens, duchesses, and ladies of court were enjoying breakfast brought to them by maids and servants. The kings, dukes, and other male monarchs were in the dining room eating, but Hans had not come down yet. His absence gave them a chance to talk.

"We must speak to the Prince about returning home. Arendelle is a great kingdom, but I for one have business to attend to at home," one king said.

"Aye, I've got to be getting' home, too," another agreed, "I was supposed to depart yesterday, but of course my ship's frozen in!"

The royalty all spoke up in agreement. Their ships were all frozen in, too, and the snowy mountains were all impassible without winter gear, which they obviously hadn't brought.

The Duke of Weselton spoke up, "And the Queen is another problem altogether! Two of my very best men went missing in the search for her, and who knows what has happened to them! Queen Elsa is the reason we're all stuck here, and I don't know what King Agdar and Queen Idun were playing at, but they were hiding the monster sheltering her! I can understand trying to protect your family, but she is a witch, and that alone calls for action!" He threw his napkin from his lap to the table, standing up, but comically not standing very tall. Despite his short stature, his words had convinced the majority of the leaders and they decided to talk to Hans as soon as he showed himself.

As they had been given rooms in the castle, they'd spent this extra time usually in the library or smoking room with a fire blazing in the fireplace to keep the winter chill at bay. They'd planned on a vacation: a few days of mornings spent shooting in the wilds of the kingdom, afternoons spent resting after delicious midday dinners, and nighttime parties with dancing and music and laughter. But everything changed at the coronation and none of that happened. So today, like the other days, they went to the library, where a warm fire was blazing. But today, they were buzzing with a new energy. Now they had a common hatred. A common goal.

"We don't usually have many prisoners," the young guard said, bringing Elsa's breakfast into her cell. He was always the guard that came in, but today was the first day he'd initiated conversation.

Elsa sat up, her body stiff from sleeping on the hard cot and from days of inactivity. The guard set the plate down and went to unlock her mitts.

"So I have to wonder," he continued, "What do you do all day?"

Elsa laughed humorlessly. "I sit here. Sometimes I walk over to the window, but I just see the winter that I cannot end, so I've stopped that. It's prison. I'm not supposed to be comfortable," she sighed. She left out the fact that she was consumed with the growing darkness of regret, wishing things could be different. She didn't need pity.

The guard nodded. He could see that behind her sad eyes was a storm. He didn't want to push her. "I'll be back in fifteen minutes," he said, as usual.

Elsa inspected her shoulder with her briefly freed hands before eating. Some of the bandages had been able to be removed, so her range of motion was a little better, but the skin around the puncture was sore underneath the dressings and hurt to touch. She turned to her breakfast. It was filling, but tasteless. A simple biscuit and some sort of gravy or mash. She could assume that with extra mouths to feed, food supplies would be running down. And there was no way they'd waste the food on a prisoner. She couldn't care less.

"I see you ever day," Elsa said when the guard came back, "But I don't know your name! A queen must know her subjects."

The young man laughed. "Karl," he answered.

"Well, Karl, you have been very kind to me. Thank you," Elsa said with a smile that only barely hid her sadness. But it was sincere and did brighten her face a bit.

Karl let a quick smile flash across his own face, before he bent to grab Elsa's shackles from the floor. After locking them once again, he went for the door. As he was leaving, he turned around.

"You're welcome," he said.

"Prince Hans, we need to talk to you."

Hans and Anna had been strolling down the hall, Anna talking excitedly about colors and menu items for their potential wedding. They were stopped by half a dozen men from various lands who were all in Arendelle as guests.

"Gentlemen," Hans smiled, "You make it sound like grim business!"

"It is rather grim, actually," the Duke replied.

"Perhaps the Princess has somewhere else to be?" a diplomat said, bowing to Anna. She glared, but Hans told her it was probably best, so she huffed and left down the hall. The men went into a study and closed the door. They had no idea Anna was listening from the other side of the door.

"Prince Hans, I'm sure you'll understand that we have business to attend to in our respective kingdoms. You can't know how it is yet, in your carefree youth, but we cannot stay here much longer," one of the men said. Anna couldn't tell who.

"Oh, excuse my ignorance. I _do _wish I could understand what responsibility feels like," Hans said with obvious sarcasm. They had touched on the topic of a role as king and it was a touchy one for the redheaded prince.

The monarchs ignored him. "As everyone knows, it was Queen Elsa who set this winter on us and froze our ships into the fjord. She must be able to reverse the curse, shouldn't she? As a witch and a monster, it is probably in her best interest!" the Duke spat.

"I'm not sure what you want _me_ to do, then," Hans said.

"Go to Elsa. Talk to her. Surely she has an evil plan and that's why she's forcing us to stay captive here. Tell her that we have the power to destroy her because of the sorcery she possesses. That should convince the Queen to reverse the spell."


	8. Chapter 8

**Ok, I have to start this off by apologizing for the ridiculous wait! I don't really have a good excuse except that I never had enough time to actually sit down and get this typed out.**

**But it's here now, so that's good, right? Thank you to everyone who is reading this. I do hope you are enjoying it! **

**Special thanks to '****Ceikaiyia Cheeks THE DIRECTOR': That would be the safe choice for the Duke and Hans, but you'll just have to see what they decide to do! **

**A****nother huge thanks to 'jayleaf1': YES I TOTALLY SANG THAT! It was brilliant! It's reviews like that that make my day!**

**As always, do not be afraid to review with good or bad comments- I can learn from and appreciate them all! Enjoy this next chapter!**

* * *

Anna rushed from the door, padding quickly and quietly down the hall until her steps would be out of earshot. Then, as she'd never much cared for maintaining "her royal dignity", she ran. She needed to warn Elsa that Hans was coming. She loved the Prince, but she knew that the Duke could have a heavy influence on him, and it scared her.

As she neared the section of the castle that housed the dungeons, the air became cold. The floors were no longer carpeted; the walls were no longer adorned with paintings, tapestry, sconces, and wallpaper. She shivered. Was the bitter cold a result of her sister? Elsa had to be freezing!

The Princess reached the guard point, where she was admitted into the dungeons. The burly man had never before been allowed to admit visitors, but he knew better than to argue with the spirited redhead. Anna counted the doors to Elsa's cell. Hers was number thirteen. She went to the door, took a deep breath as had become her habit, and knocked.

She could hear the dull metallic ring of dragging chains, and cringed. Her sister didn't deserve this.

"Anna?" Elsa said from the other side of the heavy wooden door.

"Elsa, I need to warn you. Hans is coming, and he's going to be saying… things. Elsa, the Duke of Weselton has the other dignitaries fired up because they're stuck here. They were talking to Hans and he's coming here to threaten you into thawing the fjord," Anna hurriedly explained.

"What?" Elsa gasped, "But Anna, if I could unfreeze everything, I would have done so already! I told you back on the mountain that I couldn't do it!"

"_I _know that, but Hans and the others don't! I really should go though before Hans gets here, he might be mad to see me talking to you, and you shouldn't let on that you know what's happening. But I needed to warn you."

"Thank you, Anna," Elsa said, struggling to keep her voice level. She was glad her sister couldn't see the tears welling up in her eyes.

"Okay, I'm- I'm leaving now," Anna said softly, "Good luck."

Elsa wished she could have reached the door, that her hands would have been free so she could touch the rough wood. Her sister was on the other side, as she had been for countless years. But Elsa had stayed in her room to keep her sister out of danger. Now Anna was safe, and _she _was in trouble.

A few minutes later, she heard two pairs of heavy footsteps and the clicking of the key in the lock. The Queen cleared her face of any emotion besides surprise when the cell door creaked open and Hans took a few steps in. He closed the door behind him, but didn't lock it.

"Queen Elsa," he said unthreateningly. He hugged his arms to keep out the chill and subconsciously inspected her shackles with a hint of apprehension. His breath formed a little gray cloud in the air. Elsa hadn't even realized it was cold.

"Prince Hans," she nodded, an eyebrow cocked.

"How is your shoulder? It looks like it's healing well?" Hans took another step into the dark cell.

"It's coming along. I can't sleep on that side, and it's still a bit painful to the touch, but it's healing," Elsa answered, "But I feel like that's not why you're here. I've been in this cell for days, and you haven't checked on my arm."

Hans shifted his weight. "No, you're right. I'm glad you're doing better, but that's not why I'm here. You might not know this, but all of the monarchs are still here from your coronation, despite the fact that the festivals and parties have been called off. They're here because they can't get out. You froze the fjord and they're trapped.

"I- I hadn't thought about that," Elsa lied.

"What you need to do now is simple. Unfreeze everything. You've had your fun-"

"You think I did this for fun!? You think I would reveal my powers, put everyone in danger, put _myself_ in danger for fun? Hans, don't you see? I _can't_ thaw the fjord. I don't know how. If I had the power to thaw everything, I would have done that a long time ago. I _can't_ thaw it!" Elsa stood and would have run her hands through the air if they'd been free, as was her nervous habit. But she wasn't free. She was trapped and scared.

Hans took another step towards her. "Elsa, they're not going to take 'no' for an answer. There is no denying that you are a sorceress, and they don't even know about the murders yet. You were the one who started this, who has the powers. It's your job to thaw Arendelle."

"Hans, listen to me," Elsa said, a pleading tone sneaking into her voice. "I wish I could reverse the curse. But if I could, I would have already done so."

Hans strode forward and took Elsa's shoulders firmly.

"Ow, Hans-" Elsa said through gritted teeth.

Hans was in her face. She could feel the warmth of his breath and his grip on her did not loosen. "That's a lie! Anna told me everything. She said you used to play in the snow inside the castle. Obviously, that snow didn't stay and you didn't set a magical winter on the kingdom. So you know how to thaw it."

Elsa's insides twisted in panic. She'd never thought about that. She wracked her brain trying to remember how she did it. But it was useless. After the accident with Anna, she'd tried to push the memory of "indoor magic" out of her head as best she could. She still remembered the things they did, and there was no forgetting the actual powers that plagued her daily, but forgetting how she could use them had made her feel safer.

Hans searched Elsa's face from inches away. "You're thinking. You do know how to thaw Arendelle, but you're keeping everyone here as part of some plot. Is that it? It is, isn't it. The Duke was right. It's perfect, really. You were probably nervous about becoming Queen, about how the kingdom would accept you. Now you have a kingdom who lives in fear of you and will do whatever you say."

"What? No! Hans-"

Hans had let go of Elsa's shoulders in his frenzied excitement, but now he grabbed her again, harder. She let out a small cry of pain. "We have the power to destroy you, Elsa. So here are your choices. You thaw Arendelle and we forget that any of this ever happened. You refuse to thaw the kingdom, I tell everyone about the murders, and you are executed in front of your sister and the whole kingdom. _Or _you marry me, and as king, I pardon you of your crimes." Hans smiled a smile as cold as the room.

"Wait, _what_?" Elsa said, not believing what she'd heard. "Marry you? And leave Anna wondering what she'd done wrong? Why her true love didn't turn out to be so true? No, Hans, I would sooner die than do that to Anna."

"Well I'm sure the Duke of Weselton would be more than happy to arrange that for you."

"But wait. If I die, how would that help anyone? Then the winter would be truly endless," Elsa thought aloud.

"Ah, I've looked into that. You do have a splendid library. According to many sources, once the caster of the spell is dead, the spell is erased and everything is as it once was," Hans said, flashing her a sick smile. "I'll be back tomorrow morning to hear your decision." And with that, the Prince left, leaving Elsa alone in her cell as the door echoed in the frigid air.


	9. Chapter 9

**New chapter! I know the waits are pretty random on this, my summer is lacking a schedule. :/**

**Thank you to jayleaf1 (I love your thoughts on this!) and spatterson (See my explanation below for an answer to your thought!) for your reviews. I love hearing from you guys, so don't hesitate to review. Even if it's to tell me that you hate this story or something. I hope you don't, though.**

**Anyway, it's not too long before the story will head in an interesting direction. In this chapter: Just know that even though the characters know that "an act of true love will thaw a frozen heart", no one realizes that Elsa's problems can be fixed with true love. How could they? The only reason anyone knew in the movie was after Anna sacrificed herself. No one would have guessed it otherwise. So just keep that thought in mind.**

**I hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

* * *

Elsa tried desperately to melt the snow and ice in her cell all night. But since she did not use a spell or incantation to create the magic in the first place, she knew of no way to reverse the magic. When she created the cold, it always came from a part of her mind and traveled through her veins and out through her hands. It was a part of her mind that allowed her to use her powers when she wished, like when she had built her castle, but when her emotions ran high, all control was lost, resulting in disaster like the events of her coronation day. The Queen tried summoning the cold back into her, thinking warm thoughts, any and every bizarre tactic that she could think of, all to no avail. It certainly didn't help that her hands were still trapped and that she was weakened by her time in the cell. In the end, almost as the sun would be awakening, Elsa gave up and fell into a fitful sleep. She would deal with her remaining options when she woke.

* * *

Kristoff had returned to the Valley of the Living Rock two days ago, and was still downhearted, despite his family's many attempts to cheer him. Sure, playing with the kids took his mind off things for a bit, and Bulda was always amusing when she doted on him, but when Kristoff was alone, he couldn't stop thinking about Anna.

Last night, when he'd curled up next to Sven and covered up in a big moss blanket, surrounded by the kids who could never seem to get enough time with him, he'd stared up at the cold, clear sky, at the stars that went on forever, and he mentally traveled back to Arendelle. Anna would be asleep, and Hans, too. Without permission, a thought popped into Kristoff's mind: Would Hans and Anna be _sharing_ a bed? _Woah, Kristoff. Where did that come from?_ Of course they wouldn't. That would be highly improper. In any case, Kristoff was jealous of Hans. The Prince had the one thing that Kristoff longed for. Kristoff's eyelids drooped, despite his swirling mind. The young trolls had worn him out with their wrestling, sledding, and snowball fights. The ice harvester drifted into sleep.

* * *

Hans cautiously opened the door to Anna's room. The Princess was sound asleep and snoring, her covers pulled up high against the chilly night. _Well, Anna? Are we "meant to be"? I suppose that will be up to your sister,_ Hans thought, smirking. He quietly closed the door, holding the knob so it wouldn't click. Then he padded down the hall to his own room. He'd go to Elsa soon.

* * *

The cell door creaked open. Elsa bolted upright; tired, but not a bit groggy. She'd been dreading this moment. Her heart was threatening to beat out of her chest, but she kept her face expressionless. The sun was weakly shining through the small barred window, casting the room in a frigid gloom. Hans stepped in, smiling so warmly _he _could have melted the snow.

"Good morning," he said cheerfully.

Elsa shuddered in spite of herself before coldly answering, "I don't need you to mock me, Hans." She didn't look at him.

"We're rather _icy_ this morning, aren't we?" Hans chuckled at himself.

Elsa continued to look the other way.

"You know why I'm here," Hans's jovial tone switched to a serious and business-like one. "So, what have you decided?"

"First, I believe I have the right to ask a few pressing questions," Elsa said, turning to look at Hans.

"Fair enough."

"If I decided to marry you but was unable to thaw Arendelle, how would that solve anything?"

Hans knew Elsa didn't have the slightest idea of his real intentions. If she married him, he would become king. Then he would be able to quietly kill her, a bit of poison in a drink, suffocation in bed, and her death would lead to the thawing of Arendelle. This method would probably take the longest as royal weddings and the building of trust take time, but Hans would come out victorious in the end. In all honesty, he did find Elsa beautiful and her cold and serious demeanor was attractive to him, but what would be more attractive would be a crown upon his head. "It would solve everything, Elsa. We would have each other. Arendelle would thrive under our leadership, covered in snow or not," Hans answered, stepping closer to where Elsa sat on her cot and putting a hand on her bad shoulder.

Elsa flinched and pulled away from his touch. "It still doesn't make sense, Hans. With the mountains almost completely impassable, how would the other monarchs get home? And what of food? I knew about the preparations for my coronation, and the whole kingdom was going to be relying on the fish and vegetables and summer-time resources while we had our grand dinners. The kingdom has to be running low by now, and if it's not it will be soon. Marrying you really would not solve anything, not to mention the disgusting fact that it would certainly break my sister's heart beyond repair, which is something I would never willingly be a part of. So no, Hans, I will not be marrying you."

Hans let only a fraction of his fury show through to his face. Enough to hopefully make an impression on Elsa, but not even close to the burning in the pit of his stomach. "Fine," he said with forced casualty. "Then you have two remaining options. Which do you choose?"

Elsa's heart began to pound harder than it already had been. She honestly didn't know what to do. She couldn't melt the snow. She didn't want to die. Not now, and in front of her own kingdom. But did she have any other choice? _It's the best option, really,_ a voice in her head said. Was it? What did she have to live for now anyway? What did she ever have to live for? _Anna. Anna would be devastated if you were gone. You would break her heart, something you just said you wouldn't do._ But Anna had been able to live apart from her for years. And she'd have Hans, too. If Elsa were to marry Hans, Anna would be dealing with her broken heart alone. If Elsa were to die, Anna would have the help and comfort of everyone else. _I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't do this. I have to do this. _Dying had to be her choice.

"Hans," Elsa said, carefully choosing her next words. "I am unable to reverse what I have done. I don't know why, but something has changed within me that I can't explain, and I am no longer the little girl whose magic could be temporary. As I will not marry a man who I do not love, and who is engaged to my sister who I love dearly, the only other option that you gave me was death. And while I do not want to die, if that is what must be done, I will do through with it." Elsa had stood up as she talked, still in the shackles that kept her connected to the floor, but now she sat back down. Her stomach was churning and her mind was reeling.

"A noble choice, Your Majesty," Hans said with the slightest hint of mockery. "I will then announce that you murdered the guards to give the officials ample reason to execute you. I would assume you will die tomorrow. Goodbye, Elsa." And with that, Hans turned swiftly on his heel and exited the cell.

Elsa sat, stunned. She'd just willingly put an expiration date on her life. It was doubtful that she would speak with Anna again. A few tears slid down her face, freezing to her skin before they could fall any further.

* * *

Anna walked down the hall in her nightgown and winter robe, warm woolen stockings on her feet. It was probably mildly improper, but when was she worried about being the proper princess? As she turned the corner, she heard muffled voices from behind a closed door. Eavesdropping wasn't proper either. So naturally, she didn't give it a second's thought as she went to the door to listen.

"…And it was with a look of guilt that the Queen told me she had murdered the two guards. I am so sorry, Duke. I truly am." The voice belonged to Hans, whose voice made Anna's heart leap. She still had such a little girl crush on him. But what were they saying?

"Then the only correct thing to do is sentence the Queen to death, Prince Hans. It is an exceedingly awful thing to have to do, but it is right, is it not?" This voice belonged to the Duke of Weaselt- _Weselton. _

The other royals muttered agreement. Suddenly, the full force of what they were saying hit Anna. Her stomach dropped and her heart beat quickly with panic. She remembered Elsa telling her she'd turned into a monster and killed the guards. From what Anna had just heard, the monarchs hadn't known about that until now. Anna had pushed it out of her mind, and nearly forgotten it after finding out that her memories weren't what they seemed. But it what these men were saying was true, Elsa was to be executed for this crime? Was that even allowed? Could a queen be killed by her own kingdom? And did Elsa know the fate that was in store for her? Anna's mind was racing. There had to be some way to stop the winter, even if Elsa couldn't do it. Wouldn't that be enough to pardon the crimes? Anna took off towards the dungeons once again.


End file.
